The present invention relates to a juicer. More particularly, the present invention relates to a juicer which can carry out the assembling, disassembling, and washing of the juicer in a simple and convenient manner while performing an excellent juice-extracting function irrespective of the kinds and states of materials such as vegetables, fruits or soybeans put into the juicer in the production of green vegetable juice, fruit juice or soybean milk.
An existing juicer is an appliance that presses and crushes a raw material put into an inlet port or a feed tube at high speed and produce juice from the crushed material using a centrifugal separation method. However, the existing juicer has drawbacks in that intrinsic flavor and nutrients contained in the material may be destroyed during the high-speed crushing process, and it is difficult to extract green vegetable juice from vegetables having stems or leaves. It is also difficult to extract fruit juice from fruits having a high viscosity such as kiwis or strawberries, and it is impossible to extract soybean milk from soybeans. In addition, for the purpose of continuous production of juice, it is required to frequently disassemble and clean the juicer to remove draff or residue caught in mesh holes of a mesh drum.
In addition, it is indispensable that a food processing apparatus should be maintained in a clean state, and a juicer washing and cleaning process should be carried out smoothly. If food adheres to the inner wall of the apparatus or if the apparatus becomes dirty, the food will be easily rotten and bacteria will proliferate. Thus, it is necessary that the internal components of the apparatus should be disassembled and cleaned easily.
Korean Utility Model Registration No. 190676 discloses a juice extractor having a grinding function, in which the conventional juice extractor is provided with a long feed screw horizontally assembled with a drum together with a juice-extracting net and a drum cap and engaged with a sidewall of a drive unit. Thus, the overall length of the juice extractor is long, and the extractor performs the juice extracting operation when a raw material put into the mesh drum through an inlet port are horizontally transferred at low speed.
Thus, the juice extractor disclosed in Korean Utility Model Registration No. 190676 has drawbacks in that a large space is required in using or keeping the juice extractor in custody, and in that since juice is extracted from a raw material along with the horizontal movement thereof, the juice extraction speed becomes low, and thick juice having a high viscosity does not flow downwardly smoothly, but may be collected in the drum. Also, there is a problem in that since the feed screw has no rotary shaft at one end thereof, the end of the feed screw may be shaken when being rotated, and thus collide with wall blades formed on an inner wall of the juice-extracting net to cause noise and abrasion of the feed screw to occur.
Further, the juice extractor is necessarily required to be disassembled and washed after its use in order to solve a hygienic problem which may occur by food remained inside the juice extractor and prevent damage of components of the juice extractor. Therefore, the juice extractor requires a configuration that minimizes inconvenience during disassembly and assembly. Further, there is a need for improvement of the prevention of safety accident, and the securing of durability during the use of the juice extractor.
In an attempt to solve such problems, Korean Patent Registration No. 1159176 discloses a technology related to a juicer including a draff control unit. According to the cited document, the juicer can make soybean milk from soybeans using the principle of a millstone which grinds, presses and squeezes the beans, and make fruit juice from fruits having a high viscosity such as tomatoes, kiwis, or strawberries by rubbing, pressing and crushing the fruits over a grater. In addition, since a housing of the juicer is vertically coupled to an upper side of a mainbody, the material is naturally moved downwardly due to gravity as a feed screw is rotated. Thus, since the juice extraction speed is high and the juice collection phenomenon does not occur, juice can be promptly extracted effectively from various kinds of vegetables or fruits.
In addition, according to the juicer disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 1159176, a mesh drum discharge hole is formed at the underside of the mesh drum so that draff is discharged therethrough separately from juice, and a draff packing is provided at the bottom end of the mesh drum discharge hole, so that draff having reached the bottom ring of the mesh drum by the rotation of a feed screw is pushed by a screw discharge step formed at a lower end of the screw and is guided to the mesh drum discharge hole along a discharge inclined surface of the screw to cause the draff to be extruded while pressing the draff packing that closes the mesh drum discharge hole so as to be discharged to the outside of the juicer through a draff outlet port.
In addition, the juicer includes a draff control unit configured to control an opening and closing degree of the mesh drum discharge hole so that an opening degree of the discharge hole can be controlled depending on the nature of the material used.
Further, the draff packing is provided at the mesh drum discharge hole and the draff control unit controls the degree of supporting the draff packing below the draff packing so that a primary prevention of the draff discharge is achieved by the draff packing and a secondary prevention of the draff discharge is achieved by the draff control unit, thereby enabling a more precise control.
However, the juicer disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 1159176 has a limitation in that since the draff packing is formed as a single structure having a constant elasticity and size, it does not achieve the optimum juice extraction rate with respect to various materials having different physical properties despite an advantage that extraction of juice and separation of draff are easily performed even in the case where the juicer includes only the draff packing.
More specifically, when a fragile and soft raw material is used, the draff packing formed of a relatively ductile material is used whereas when a strong and tough raw material is used, the draff packing formed of a relatively rigid material is used, so that an appropriate compression force can be applied to a raw material put into the inlet port. But since a single draff packing is provided in the juicer, the optimum extraction juice efficiency cannot be achieved.
In addition, since such a draff packing is securely fixed to the underside of the mesh drum, an inconvenience is caused to a user when washing and cleaning the mesh drum discharge hole.
Moreover, in the case where the juicer is not provided with the draff packing in the mesh drum discharge hole, but is provided with only the draff control unit, it is difficult for a user to apply a proper compression force for constantly preventing the draff discharge to a raw material put into the inlet port, and it is not easy to control the opening and closing degree of the mesh drum discharge hole. In addition, the user suffers from an inconvenience of having to control the opening and closing degree of the mesh drum discharge hole while always watching the mesh drum discharge hole carefully.
Further, even in the case where the draff packing is provide in the mesh drum discharge hole and the draff control unit controls the degree of supporting the draff packing below the draff packing, since the draff packing is not removed from the underside of the mesh drum during the disassembling and cleaning of the juice after being used, it is difficult to cleanly wash the mesh drum discharge hole. Also, even in the case where green vegetable juice or fruit juice is separately extracted from various kinds of vegetables or fruits, the user suffers from an inconvenience of having to first extract juice from one kind of vegetable or fruit and completely disassemble and wash the juicer to remove draff or residue inside thereof, and then again assemble the juicer to extract juice from the next raw material.